Wilbur (W6BIP)

Feb. 02, 2000

BACHMAN, Wilbur 'Bip' -- Age 88, an electronic engineer and pioneer in ham radio communication, died peacefully of heart failure at his home on Wednesday, February 2, 2000. He was a native Californian born in Santa Rosa living in San Francisco most of his life. He loved to travel and communicate around the world on his Ham Radio and was known as W6BIP internationally. Bip was an active contester and provided the SF section for many SweepStakes participants. Bip seldom used his name, even professionally as he preferred to be known simply as Bip even to his non ham conemporaries. His passing once again creates an emptiness recently filled by a whole generation of experimenters and communicators who made our hobby unique.

Amateur Radio in San Francisco has indeed lost a very good friend. I met "Bip" only once during a Field Day outing many years ago, but exchanged QSOs with him during all the major contests and sweeps during the last 6 years. His QSL card is proudly displayed on my wall - not as an accomplishment of achieving any great distance, but rather the pride I felt in contacting a celebrity within the history of Amateur Radio in San Francisco. I wish I could have known Bip better. However, I'll always remember his steady and skilled fist.
73s, Bip

When I was living in Lilburn Georgia I had unbelievable problems with RFI and TVI. A friend who knew Bip suggested that I contact him. Bip graciously stayed on the phone with me as long as I wanted to talk to him. He sent me a HUGE package of information on RFI and TVI in the mail, and offered in his note to talk to me again if I needed him.
Bip will be one ham I never forget because of his willingness to work with me (a stranger) on my problem and do so as if he had known me his entire life. Rest in peace Mr Bip.

Bip was a fascinating on-air contact. A frequent visitor to the low band
CW DX scene, he had a very rare attitude toward helping others in
less favorable positions get that special and needed contact. For example,
he worked for a number of months as a go-between just to get me JT on
40CW .. culminating in my only two contacts and a card for it that I would
likely never have gotten, without his help...
This man was a gentleman and a scholar .. plus he was kind.

To All,
Thank you for your kind words on my Uncle Wilbur(w6BIP)Bachman.
He was my Mother's brother and a very nice and kind man, who was intensively interested in the ham radio thing. You should have seen thae aparatus of electronic radio machines in his and auntie Elsie's back room in their house in San Francisco. Boy was I impressed as a young girl in the 50's!
My Mom, Lucille Bachman Krieger (who also has departed) told me that Uncle Wilbur won the worlds best ham radio contest 2 years in a row in the 20's(if she was accurate). Does anyone have any details on the years that this happened?
My hats off to Uncle Wilbur, a very nice uncle, and apparently a very very good ham radio operator too!
Candy Hammer

BIP,
You will be missed. You sent me information about TVI many years ago. What many people do not realize is that BIP was the president of the Ford Aerospace Amateur Radio club that I had the privledge of being the president also. Bip was involved in Oscar 1, which many people may not know.

Many years too late, since I just found this listing in 2013. Bip was a good friend and college. He and I worked together at Ford Aerospace, and I designed a digital memory contest keyer for him about the time he was retiring from the company. He loved the device I gave him and I loved him as a very nice person and ham. I remember being invited to his San Francisco shack and being totally intimidated (in a very nice way) by his setup. A ham's ham, for sure, and nice guy. He is missed.

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